Life in Technicolor
by RedDevilLola
Summary: At the start of a lifelong dream job, what happens when life decides to get in the way? In a game of head vs heart, who wins, especially when Nanoha has dedicated herself to following the head? AU, with a lot of relationship twists and turns, M since there will definitely be real life drama/mature situations coming in later chapters. Enjoy!
1. Mornings Shouldn't Happen So Early

A/N: Hey all, this was something floating around in my head, and I had some free time, so I figured, what the hell, lets write a story! This is my first time ever putting something of this nature online, so please be gentle with your reviews (-/\\-) All comments a criticism is welcome, I really would like to create a story worth reading, since I do enjoy reading everyone else's stories! I'm a music fiend, so I'll let you guys know what I'm listening to as I write, it definitely has an impact. Check them out, if you get a chance!

Music: Portions for Foxes- Rilo Kiley, Dreams- Youngblood Hawke,

RIIIIING, RIIIIIING

RIIIIIING, RIIIIING

RIIIIIIIING, RIIIIIIING

"uuhh, Hello?"

"MORNING SLEEPYHEAD!"

"Gahh Hayate!" From under a tangle of covers, Nanoha blearily opened one eye to look at the clock. "For the love of god, it's only 4:30am! W-H-A-T T-H-E- H-E-L-L?!" Nanoha was seriously pissed. It had taken her forever to fall asleep the night before, nerves getting the best of her. After all, it wasn't every day you started your first day of residency.

Her best friend Hayate sounded not only wide awake, but completely serious, lacking her usual teasing tone. "Weeeeeellll I was excited, and I couldn't sleep, and I figured you had to be getting up soon, and it was either this, or I show up in person. And much as I would love to jump you naked, I can't be getting distracted on day one."

It took Nanoha a minute to process everything that was said. Way too early for this…. "Remind me to smack you for that when I see you, and for….WAIT DID YOU JUST SAY JUMP ME NAKED? YOU KNOW YOU'RE JUST A FRIEND, I DON'T THINK OF YOU THAT WAY!" Nanoha sat bolt upright in her bed, wide awake now and blushing furiously. Sure they had fooled around when they were kids, but that time was long past now.

Hayate started laughing and her voice resumed its normal teasing, playful tone. "HA took you long enough. You're awake now, right?" Hayate knew she was in for it once she met up with Nanoha, but the reaction was priceless. Not to mention the ridiculous amount of blushing that was sure to happen later, once they met up. After all. She wasn't going to let this go that easily.

"Yes, I'm awake, but that doesn't make me want to kill you any less. If anything, I think I'll head to the hospital BY MYSELF this morning." Nanoha grinned internally, knowing while it was mean, Hayate would be putty in her hands after that.

"NO YOU CAN"T DO THAT TO ME! After all, what's a promise between best friends and I don't know what I'd do if you weren't with me on day one…." Sniffling could be heard through the phone and Nanoha was starting to feel a little remorseful. "Ok, well I guess we can still go to breakfast before we walk in. Mom and Dad might kill me for skipping out on them, but…." "Thank you, thank you, ohmygodohmygodohmygod I'm so sorry, I will never tease you like that again….you're just so cute when you get flustered."

Nanoha couldn't help but let out her signature laugh. "Nyahahaha, aaaand that was short lived. I suppose if I'm being dragged up this early, she must be quite a girl." "…Who said anything about a girl?" Hayate sounder rather miffed that her secret plans were that easy to figure out. "Hayate I know you too well to think it could be anything else. We've been friends forever, of course it's about a girl."

"Well excuse me, miss know it all! Fine, it is, but it's strictly recon only. And the place is supposed to be awesome anyway, so it's really a win/win for you. You get to see my smiling face and have a great breakfast before our first day." Nanoha laughed again, knowing the mischievous brunette had her pegged.

"Alright fine, but I have to get ready. I'll call when I'm done." "You're the best!" Nanoha smirked, "I know" as she hung up. She rolled back over in bed, staring at the ceiling. Day one. What she'd been waiting for her whole life. Not that college then med school had been terrible, but _this was it!_ Day one of her Neurology residency. Not that she had set out on studying the brain, but in med school she became fascinated by how it could control so many things, yet be so delicate at the same time. It helped that one of her favorite professors was one of the top experts in traumatic brain injuries in the country. It was thanks to his influence that she decided on neuro as her specialty, hoping to follow in his footsteps.

She looked back at the clock. 4:45 am. _Damn_ , she thought to herself, _I could have slept in longer, we don't have the welcome conference until 8am_. Sighing, she got up and went into the bathroom, and took a peek in the mirror. Two slightly puffy, but still sparking sapphire eyes looked back. Her thick auburn hair was sticking out in multiple directions, probably from all the tossing and turning she had done the night before. _Well, the least I can do is make myself presentable_. She wanted to look good for her first day, even if looks didn't mean a whole lot once she got to work. _Well first things first, shower_. "AHHHHH, cold water, cooooooold water!"

5:30am

Nanoha went downstairs into the large kitchen. Her parents owned the Midori-ya Café, quite popular for their baked goods, especially the cinnamon rolls. She knew they'd be prepping for their opening already. "Hey Mom, hey Dad!"

"Hey sweetie! What are you doing up and ready so early? I though you didn't have to be at the hospital until 8?" Momoko Takamachi straightened up from the dough she was rolling. "No that's true, but Hayate woke me up early saying there was this diner she had to try". Nanoha rolled her eyes as Momoko laughed. "Well I'm sure Dad will be teary, since it's his little girl's first day, ("Mooooooom") but who are we to get in the way of whatever crazy scheme that girl has going on now".

"Thanks Mom!" Nanoha went to give her mother a hug. "Good luck today sweetie, you'll do great! Stop by the dojo to say hello to your father, brother and sister before you go". Momoko herself was a little choked up, _there goes my baby girl, off to first day as a doctor_ , as she pulled Nanoha into a huge bear hug.

"I will, I'll see you later!" Smiling, Nanoha walked out the back kitchen door across a small courtyard. Her father was a well-trained martial artist, and highly sought after as a teacher. He had been teaching herself, brother and sister since they were old enough to walk, in addition to those that he saw something special in. Kyoya and Miyuki had definitely fallen into the prodigy category, but she could hold her own against them. Which apparently made her more deadly than most of the population, but hey, who was she to brag.

THUMP, BANG, KYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

 _Dear god, there they go again_. Nanoha stood next to the door against the wall, off to the side as she opened it. She definitely did not want to get in the way of whatever may come flying out. _Slowly, slowly…._ she opened the door. ZING, a shuriken came flying out. _If it weren't for my training_ , she mused, _that would not have ended well_.

"Nanoha! Lightning quick reflexes as always, huh?" "Morning Dad! Hey Kyoya and Miyuki!"

"Hey Nanoha!" Miyuki cheerfully called from where she was busy pinning Kyoya against the mats. "Mmmpphh-ornin, Na-oommph- ha"

"Nyahahahaha, no mercy per usual, I see". Miyuki was not one to take things lightly. "Ohh come on Nanoha, you're the one who started that whole full power, maximum destruction thing in the first place! I'm merely taking your words to heart. The more you squirm, the worse this will be" Miyuki's face lit up with a rather scary grin as she dug into Kyoya even more. "Eeesh, I'd better leave before things get really out of hand and I spend my morning patching you two up."

"Ohh you're leaving already?" Shiro pouted at his youngest daughter. Though the head of the Takamachi family was more than imposing with his dark hair, intense violet eyes and carved frame, he was a softie when it came to his kids, especially his youngest.

"Yes Dad, meeting Hayate for breakfast before we head over to the hospital. We did promise to walk in together you know." Nanoha smiled as she remembered how Hayate called her, so excited that they both got into their first choice programs. Hayate had secured a spot in Uminari General's coveted anesthesia residency program, while she was going into the neurology residency program with hopefully the option of continuing into an ICU fellowship. Hayate made her promise they would walk in together on their first day, like they had in high school, college, and then med school. Hey it had worked out well so far, who was she to question that kind of good karma.

"Well have a good first day, can't wait to hear all about it! And tell that troublemaker to not do anything overly stupid on your first day." Shiro pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. He was tearing up, thinking about how his little girl was not so little anymore. "Yes Dad, I will, I'll see you later. Later guys!" Shiro turned back, trying to secretly wipe away the tear that had formed in the corner of his eye. "Keep at it you two!" he gruffly yelled at his oldest children, so as to cover his current emotions.

Nanoha turned around into the cool breeze of the early spring morning and headed back into the house to grab her stuff. The smells starting to drift up from the bakery below her made her mouth water and stomach rumble. She called Hayate to let her know she was headed over. "This place better be as good as Hayate promised" she grumbled out loud over the protests of her stomach as she left.


	2. Hurry Up and Wait

A/N: 2nd Chapter, here we go! I had it started, then decided it needed to be redone/had a very strange dream that sent me in this direction. In case anyone was wondering, anything italicized are the private thoughts of that character. I tried not to get overly medical, but I did have to put some stuff in, as it will definitely play a part later! Hope people enjoy! Disclaimer: I do not own anything MGLN related.

Music: Of Monsters and Men- Lakehouse, Youngblood Hawke- Dreams

2\. Hurry Up and Wait

Nanoha pulled her coat a little tighter around her body as she walked up the street to Hayate's house. It came in handy that they had lived close to each other since they had been kids, and she offered to drive them today. There was a slight chill in the morning air. Early spring could be cold, but she wasn't regretting her decision to wear a skirt. One must make a good impression on the first day. For today, she had decided on an azure blue pencil skirt ending slightly above her knees and a cream colored blouse. A brilliant red pendent hung around her neck, a good luck charm she had carried with her since she was a child. She almost had worn her hair down, but then in a last minute decision pulled it into her signature side pony-tail. A little make-up to highlight her eyes and she was as ready as she could be. _Though I could have probably left the hair down to help cover my neck_ , as she shivered slightly. _Ohh well_.

She rounded the last corner and noticed the sky starting to light up, the dark indigo of night starting to turn into various shades of orange, red and gold. The last stars hung on and Nanoha was suddenly struck by how beautiful it was. _I hope the things I do can come close to as inspiring as this sunrise_ , she thought to herself suddenly. Butterflies started dancing in her stomach, and she was glad that Hayate was going to be there with her.

Nanoha met Hayate as she was sitting on the front steps of her house. "Hey lady!" Hayate jumped up and threw her arms around Nanoha's neck. "Geeze it's too early for your groping!" Nanoha pushed the brunette girl off. "Ohh come on, this is exciting! I'm going to stalk…..err….see the hottest girl in the city, present company excluded of course, and then go practice actual, real medicine. On live people! With my best friend too, this day could not be better." Hayate was bouncing as she walked, usual wide grin in place. Nanoha pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, "I can't believe your cousins didn't convince the hospital board to not hire you."

Hayate turned to pout at her friend. "Ohh come on, you know I'm smarter than I look. And they know I have talent too". "Sheesh, alright, alright, I was just kidding." "Meanie!" Hayate jumped on Nanoha again, making Nanoha blush as she got a little….handsy. "Erm, Hayate we ARE in public, besides the fact that I'm not barking up THAT tree…HANDS! "Tee hee, you know I can't help myself, you look good this morning. A beauty rivaling that amazing sunrise. And besides, I have my sights set on someone else, as you well know." Hayate walked over to her car and unlocked the doors with a press of a button and winked at Nanoha. "Come on, you getting in?"

Shaking her head, Nanoha climbed into the car, wondering how her friend had turned into such a pervert. Her parents died when she was young, leaving her with a sizeable bank account and in the care of her cousins, the Wolkenritter's. Shamal was the Head of Cardiothoracic Surgery and Chief of the Surgical ICU and her younger sister Vita was up and coming in the Neurosurgery program. Carim Gracia, one of the top authorities in genetic research and a leading biochemist was a good family friend and usually around when she wasn't traveling the world. They always tried to be good role models, and were nowhere near as touchy feely as Nanoha's parents (still acting like teenagers, almost 30 years later). While this explained Hayate's career choice and to a good extent Nanoha's herself, her blunt, flirty and overall perverted personality was a lot harder to explain. Nanoha signed, _It takes all kinds I guess_. Though when it came down to it, Hayate was a kind and loyal friend, someone that you wanted to guard your back when the shit hit the fan.

"So where is this place that we're going for breakfast anyway?" Hayate glanced over at her friend, grinning. "That's the best part, its right around the corner from the hospital. I figured we could park the car and then walk over, less for us to worry about when we head to the welcome conference." Nanoha smiled. "Alright, sounds like a plan. You nervous?" She looked at Hayate, whose smile softened as she kept her eyes on the road. "I know I'm ready, but yes, when it comes down to it, I'm nervous." Hayate glanced at Nanoha, who was lost in her own thoughts. "Did you think I wouldn't be?"

Nanoha sighed as she responded. "I knew you probably were, but you do a much better job of hiding what you're thinking. I have my heart on my sleeve half the time."

"That's one of your best qualities, everyone can see how genuine you are. I told you, you just need to work on your game face more!" Nanoha smiled when she heard her best friend say that, feeling better overall.

The girls chatted quietly over the rest of the ride, before pulling into the hospital's employee parking lot 15 mins later. Since it was still early, the day shift had only started to trickle in. "Perfect, we have plenty of time, it's only 6:15. The diner should be around the corner" Hayate started walking to the stairs, eager to get to her destination. Nanoha laughed to herself as she watched her friend's determined stride. The brunette, though shorter than Nanoha, could really haul when she wanted to.

The diner was indeed a short walk, as promised, only around the corner from hospital. Hayate suddenly whirled around before they walked in. "Nanoha, I look okay right? The hair's good, make-up, clothes, everything?" Nanoha smiled and she looked into the normally laughing blue eyes that had taken on a serious glint. "Yes Hayate, you look good. I'd be flirting with you, if we hadn't already established that as a useless endeavor." Hayate grinned, her mischievous look settling back in and she turned around, grabbed the door and strode in. Nanoha followed closely, wondering what trouble this adventure might get them in.

The diner 'Whitey's', was one of those 50's retro places, old advertising signs hanging on the walls, chrome accents and vinyl seats running along the length of the counter. There were also pictures of wolves in a few key places, but in such a way that you didn't really notice them. While there were some people eating in the place, it wasn't too crowded. The sign at the front said please seat yourself, along with a list of that day's specials. Nanoha eyed the board appreciatively. "Woah, Hayate, these specials look really good. How did you find out about this place?"

Hayate led them over to a booth along the windows. "When I went for orientation, one of the 2nd year residents told me about it. I guess they stay open all night, great for the 3am munchies and coffee. Not only that, the brother and sister who own it also own 'The Blue Wolf', so they take their food seriously. They keep the connection really low key, though. I guess they want each place to stand on its own merit."

Nanoha sat back with the menu, now seriously impressed. 'The Blue Wolf' was one of the best restaurants in the city, annually making the Best Of lists in multiple categories. "Well I should have learned by now, not to doubt you when it comes to food."

"Hi there, can I get you girls anything to drink?" Nanoha looked up into a pair of serious crimson eyes under long silvery white hair. The woman had a small smile, offsetting her serious look. Nanoha instantly knew, this was absolutely the woman Hayate was now obsessed with. Nanoha smiled back, "Yes, I'd like a glass of water and a large OJ". Nanoha looked at Hayate, who was determined not to look up. "Coffee please" she said softly.

The silver haired woman nodded, "I'll grab those drinks for you guys and be right back". She turned and headed back to the counter. Nanoha watched her glide away, slightly in awe of the grace with which she moved. "Damn, Hayate….now I know why you called so early." Hayate said nothing as she read her menu, but turned an interesting shade of red.

Elsewhere

"Ok that looks good, we can close up and bring him up to the ICU. Good work, Testarossa." "Thanks Dr. Yamamoto." The one addressed as Testarossa looked up at her scrub nurse and held her hand out. "Staple gun, please." Once she had it, all her attention was focused on closing the incision. Burgandy eyes never wavered, and several people in the OR couldn't help but fantasize about what it would be like to have that stare focused on them. Once she was done, she cleaned off the betadine, and placed a clean dressing over the incision. "Okay guys, that's it for me, let's get him ready to roll." As the rest of the OR staff started to unscrew the halo pins and get the patient back onto the ICU bed, Fate Testerossa stretched her arms over her head and cracked her back and neck as she went to scrub out. Dr. Yamamoto, the attending on call overnight had already scrubbed out and went to find the patient's family to update them.

"Niiiice catch Fate. Yamamoto was definitely impressed by that catch, I'm sure that's why he let you take lead. He almost never lets second years lead!" Fourth year resident Haru Miyazaki was grinning ear to ear as he watched Fate scrub out. "I knew you were an ass kicker, that's why I picked you as my minion."

Fate started laughing as she washed her hands. "Ohh come on, I don't think you had a choice in the matter, Chrono was the one who made out the assignments."

"Yeah, but I told him to give me someone good!"

"And if I hadn't been like a little sister to him, you still would have taught me the same?"

"Awww Fate, don't say things like that! How could I not, we clicked instantly, you're like my sister from another mister!"

Fate started laughing so hard she doubled over. "Ohh my god, I was not expecting that to come out of your mouth. Don't let Rico hear you sweet talking me like that, he'll get jealous."

Haru was laughing now too. "You're right, he'd be quite jealous, and he might not feed you for a while…"

"NOOOOO! That's a serious threat, he promised me that chocolate cake he makes the next time I cone over! If you mess that one up for me Haru, mentor or not, I'll owe you an ass kicking." If there was one thing Fate could never joke about, it was her sweets. As someone with not just one sweet tooth, but sweet teeth, she took her deserts seriously.

"Nahh, I know better darling. Now let's get this guy up to the ICU so we can round and get out of here."

Fate nodded and headed back into the OR, where the rest of the staff was transferring the patient onto the ICU bed to bring him back upstairs. When anesthesia gave the go ahead, they started heading up. Fate was finishing her second of seven years of her neurosurgery residency. Technically, she was a third year starting today, though it didn't feel like. Especially since she'd had night call for the past 2 weeks. Talk about losing track of your life, when your nights were days and vice versa, it tended to skew one's perspective. Once she finished rounds, she had a few days off, which she planned to spend couch surfing and catching up on her DVR. When she came back, she would be the junior resident on the neurovascular service. She was looking forward to that. The only downside was that Haru wouldn't be taking night call anymore, since year five was research dedicated. Though it would be nice to wander over to Haru and Rico's apartment and know both of them would be there. _I'm really lucky that I got Haru as a mentor and we work so well together. Not everyone else was as lucky._

They got up to the ICU with the patient and brought him back to his room. The room was immediately buzzing with activity, the nurses getting the patient settled back, and the ICU fellow making his way into the room for the surgery report. "Ahhh the crimson goddess returns." Fate turned around, knowing immediately who was behind the teasing voice. "Who knew you actually thought so highly of me Arf? You getting this one?" Arf started laughing as she went to help untangle wires. "Nahh, I had the bad luck to be charge last night." Fate looked back at everyone, "Who's taking the patient? Are you guys ready for report?" "I'm taking him, I'm ready when you are." The nurse who spoke was Mariko, who Fate had become friends with when she had done her ICU rotation. Fate smiled at her as she got started.

"Alright, 53 year old male, who as you guys know became unresponsive last night. CT scan showed significant increase in the size of his bleed, so we took him down for emergent clot evacuation. We got the clot out pretty easily, but it looks like there might be some residual damage, so we're going to leave him intubated for now and see how he does waking up. We'll leave it up to the ICU team if they want seizure monitoring or not. We do want another CT scan, but later today in the afternoon, around 1pm would be good. As usual, blood pressure less than 140, post-op antibiotics, Keppra for seizure prophylaxis. Let us know if you have any questions." Haru nodded at Fate, pleased with the report she gave. "Thanks Fate! Dinner later still?" Mariko asked as Fate finished. "Yup, wouldn't miss it. I'll text you when I get up."

They stepped out of the room to let the nurses work and sat in the nurse's station to finish their post op notes. Arf came out a few minutes later. "That was well done. I think your mentor has done a good job so far, even if he didn't have much to work with." Arf winked at Fate, then stuck her tongue out. "Mou, Arf come on, you know it was the other way around, Haru didn't ruin me" Haru shook his head, "Hello guys, still here! At least do me the courtesy of a quick escape before you talk about me, my ears are ringing enough as it is! Fate, I'll catch you in rounds in 20, I'm going to grab a bite before we start."

Fate sat back in her chair and took off her scrub cap and took her hair out of its messy bun. Arf sat next to her. "Man, watch out when you let your hair down, your fan club is gonna stroke out." Sure enough, a small kyaah was heard from around the corner then a crash as a chair went flying into the opposite desk, as its previous occupant had gotten up so quickly that it was unknown where they went flying off to. Fate sighed. "I don't know why I have a fan club, it's a pain in the ass most of the time. I mean I know I'm not ugly, but seriously? I can't be that good looking." Arf shook her head in disbelief. "Girl, you are something else, you're drop dead gorgeous and if I was inclined to play for that team, I'd be all over you. Luckily, I am not so inclined and can therefore screw your head back on straight. Your nickname isn't The Crimson Goddess for nothing you know."

"I really wish it wasn't."

"Well, nothing you can do about it now. Just don't break many more hearts and you'll be fine. And speaking of breaking hearts, you going to the welcome conference this morning once you finish rounds? I know your mother will be heartbroken if you don't…" Arf said it teasingly, as they both knew Precia Testarossa did not get heartbroken.

"Well I suppose I must. Rounds should go quickly, so I'll grab a quick bite before I head over. If there's one thing I can't do, it's take my mother on an empty stomach." Fate finished her post op note and stood up. "Tell my cousin I say hi when you see him!"

"Sure thing. Watch out for your fan club when you leave!"

Fate laughed as she walked away, and as she turned the corner immediately ran into several people. "Oopmh, ohh man, I'm sorry!" Fate dropped her scrub cap but couldn't retrieve it, as she was blocked by 5 people attempting to pick it up at the same time. "No worries, Fate!" "It was our fault!" "We'll get it for you!" "You look so awake after surgery! No one else looks like you do coming out of the OR!" Fate backed up with her hands held up. "Ummm you know what guys, it's fine, I'll grab another downstairs." Fate turned around and practically ran for the back elevators. The last thing she heard as the doors closed was Arf laughing hysterically and the screams of her self-proclaimed fan club as they fought over the scrub cap. "Who knew adults could still act like teenagers?! Dear god, get me into my bed" Fate said as she leaned against the wall while the elevator started to move.


	3. Two Roads

A/N: Hmmm, both of them are going to the conference, could we have an epic meeting? Also, more characters will be making their appearances soon, and I've hinted at a few connections, feel free to guess as to what they are. Sorry for the slow update, work has been out of control. Always a pain when real life gets in the way…

Music: Andrew McMahon- High Dive, The Strumbellas- Young and Wild

Chapter 3: Two Roads

Fate and Haru finished rounding with the team fairly quickly as she had hoped. The only bad news from this was that now, she really had to go to the conference. Her mother, Precia Testarossa, was the world's leading genetic researcher and a brilliant biochemist. She had already unlocked the genomes of several previously incurable diseases and pushed medicine forward in leaps and bounds with her discoveries. The chemical patents she had were significant enough to be lifetime achievements for any scientist, but Precia kept going. She was keeping her next project under wraps for the time being, as she rarely liked sharing incomplete results.

Given her driven nature and the work she did with teams all over the world, it meant Fate and her older sister Alicia often had to move frequently with her. Their father died when Fate was only 1. While they had loved growing up all over the world, Precia's work often meant she came home late from the lab and left early morning. Their early childhood had been mostly spent with nannies, until Fate was 11 and Alicia was 13. Close family friends, Clyde and Lindy Harlaown, offered to take the girls in and raise them with their son Chrono, so they would have a more stable life while they finished school. Precia had agreed, wanting to do what was best for her girls. While Fate loved Precia, she was so thankful to Lindy and Clyde, and she thought of them as her parents as well.

Thanks to all of this, her relationship with her mother was interesting, to say the least. At times it seemed more like that of colleagues as opposed to mother and daughter, but Fate knew if she truly every needed her, Precia would be there. But it didn't make working with her any easier. And now here she was, back in Uminari City working on her latest project. Who knew how long she was going to stick around, but Fate knew it could be a while. _Well, I guess I'll just have to keep my head down and make nice. Already too many people know she's my mother, if the rest of the hospital finds out, my life really will get impossible._

Sigh. "Haru, you know depending on how long she's planning on sticking around, I may be crashing on you and Rico's couch to stay hidden and avoid the masses." Haru smiled as he wrapped an arm around Fate. "You know you're welcome any time babe. Just remember we'll let you know if we need any, ahem, boyfriend time." Fate laughed as she leaned into Haru's embrace. "I know, I never mind you guys kicking me out for a while. Just know, I WILL give you crap afterwards."

"I wouldn't expect any less." Haru gave her shoulder one last squeeze of encouragement, then split apart from her with a hip check as they got close to the auditorium. The hospital had one that could hold up to 500 people, as was fitting of a large teaching hospital. And since this was a welcome lecture by the famous Dr. Precia Testarossa, the place would be at capacity. "You know we're sitting in the back corner, right?" Fate glanced sideways at Haru, hoping he wouldn't be star struck by her famous mother. 09

"Ohh I know girl, I was planning on it. I texted Ginga to stake us out some seats. Speaking of Ginga, you really should see where that can go."

Fate shrugged nonchalantly "You know, I have thought about it, but it feels like I'm waiting for something. You know me, perennial heart breaker, nothing seems to stick. Nothing has made me want to stick around yet."

"Well you never know unless you try. Even if it adds to the legend of The Crimson Goddess." Haru started grinning slyly as he looked at Fate out of the corner of his eye.

Fate was rolling her eyes at Haru. "Dear god, not you too! I'm going to kill Arf when I see her again, make sure you pass that along."

They walked into the auditorium, looking for Ginga and their seats. When they couldn't see her right away, Haru pulled out his phone to text again. "Ohh she said she sees us. Far back right corner." Fate craned her neck and saw where Ginga had found them seats, the opposite direction from where they had come in. As she turned to follow Haru, for the second time that morning, she walked right into someone and knocked them off balance. "Ahh I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going!" Fate reached out and grabbed the persons arm to steady them. "Are you okay?" She looked down into a pair of sparkling sapphire eyes as the girl she almost knocked over regained her balance. _Gulp, I'd remember seeing her around!_

Nanoha took a closer look at the tall blonde girl as she stood back up. _Her eyes are mesmerizing!_ "It's no trouble, you have pretty quick reflexes, I thought I was going down." Nanoha smiled at her rescuer, her heart speeding up a little when she realized the unknown girl was still holding her arm.

Fate was taken aback by the smile she received. Unlike the people who normally fell all over her, this smile felt genuine, and for some strange reason, was quite intriguing. Fate looked down and blushed slightly when she realized she was still holding on to the girls arm. She let go quickly. "Ahh, well, fast as lightning, apparently. _Gah! Idiot, why, why, WHY did you pull that line?_ I'm just glad everything worked out. I'll see you around?"

"Well since it's my first day, I'm sure you will. It was nice meeting you!" Nanoha gave the still blushing blonde another dazzling smile, her eyes twinkling as she turned around. She continued walking down the aisle to where Hayate had found them seats.

Hayate was watching the whole thing and grabbed Nanoha as soon as she sat down. "Just who WAS THAT?! My god, we're not even in the building for 10 minutes and you already have girls falling all over you. I wish I was so lucky." Hayate slumped back into her seat pouting.

"Ohh come on, that's not my fault. And to answer your question, I have no idea who that was, I didn't get her name." Hayate sat back up looking scandalized. "Rule #1, if anything like that happens, GET THEIR NAME!" Nanoha laughed as she took her coat off and settled in. "Well next time, I'll get it. She was in scrubs, she definitely works here, and she looks like she's around our age, so I'm sure it won't be hard to figure it out."

"Let's hope not!"

Fate, in the meantime, was being dragged up to her seat by Haru. "And you doubt your powers, ohh statuesque one!"

"It's not my fault! I didn't meant to run into…shit I forgot to get her name!" Fate turned around, flustered, to see if she could find where the girl was sitting. Haru started laughing. "Fate, I think this is the first time I've seen you thrown off your game. We need to find that girl, see if she can put you in your place!

As they got up to their seats, Ginga was busy looking back and forth between the two. "What was that?"

Haru grinned and he sat down. "Why nothing less than our dear Fate getting knocked off her game by a lovely little thing with thick auburn hair and sparkling blue eyes." Ginga sent a death glare in Haru's direction. "Ya know, the way you said that, are you sure you're gay? Should we warn Rico?" Haru laughed as he ran a hand through his hair. "No my dear, we shall not be warning Rico of anything. I happen to appreciate beauty when I see it." Ginga leaned in to hiss a response.

As her friends started bickering back and forth, Fate replayed the encounter in her head. _I can't believe I didn't ask her name! She said it's her first day, that makes sense, I haven't seen her around. Wonder which program she's joining, omg I'll die if it's neurosurgery. Though maybe that could work out well? Something about her, I dunno…._ Fate saw her mother down by the front podium chatting with the various department residency directors. Every now and then, she saw her glance around, looking for her. Fate slid down in her seat a little more. It was then she realized her friends were still bickering.

"Haru, Ginga, enough with the snark! If you guys are still talking when she starts, she'll find us for sure. I've never seen anyone pick out trouble makers as fast as her." With a final glare at each other, Haru and Ginga settled into their seats. "Sorry Fate" "Yeah we'll call truce for now". Neither had to ask who Her was, they knew exactly who was about to start a lecture at the front.

Precia stepped up to the podium and the entire auditorium went silent in approximately 2 seconds. She smiled as she looked around at everyone, finally seeing where her daughter was sitting and caught her eye briefly before moving on. Haru leaned in to Fate and hissed between his teeth "Daayum, that's where you got your people killing smile from!" Fate elbowed him and growled as she sank even further into her seat. Ginga shot her a sympathetic look before everyone's attention was hooked by the commanding woman at the front.

"It's nice to see so many of you could drag yourselves away this morning. Hopefully all your patients are alive at the end of the lecture for you to go back to. For those who may not know, I am Dr. Precia Testarossa, and while I am not going to tell you about my current project, I am here to talk about one of my more recent ones. The boundaries of genetics are still being pushed forward, and the topic I'd like to focus our attention on today involves the splicing of genes and isolating specific genomes."

Fate let her attention wander slightly as Precia got into her rhythm. She knew she'd have to stay after the lecture was over to go say hello, so she resigned herself to sucking it up until she could climb into bed. She also, unknowingly catching Haru's notice, continued to scan the crowd for the mystery new girl.

"Yeesh, I had no idea just how much I didn't know until right now! That woman has probably forgotten more things than we could hope to learn in one lifetime." Hayate was shaking her head in amazement as they picked up their things once the lecture had finished. Nanoha nodded as she grabbed her coat "Yes indeed, I was blown away by her research. And her for that matter, just brilliant."

They blended in with the crowd of people heading towards the doors of the auditorium. "So the plan is, meet up in the main entrance around 5?" Hayate nodded. "Yup that sounds about right. Obviously depending on what happens both of us may be earlier or later, but we can just text and update throughout the day." As they got out into the hallway, both took a deep breath, looked at each other, grinned and said in unison "Here we go!" Hayate split off in a different direction up the hall from Nanoha. All the new residents and interns were to meet with their seniors in a place chosen by the senior overseeing their orientation. In her case, she was headed to meet 3rd year resident Alto Krauetta by the coffee cart in the outpatient building.

The hospital was huge, several different buildings all attached together. Nanoha was quite impressed by the amount of people moving around. The outpatient building was a short 5 min walk from where the auditorium was and she felt as though she was moving through an airport or train station. She kept scanning the crowd, to see if she could find the tall blonde girl from earlier. Nanoha had been taken aback by the girls beautiful burgundy eyes. It was similar to staring into a ruby, there was a depth to them that she had rarely seen. As she approached the coffee cart, she was surprised to find herself disappointed that she didn't find her. A new crush perhaps? Not that Nanoha was surprised, she had dated both men and women since she was in high school, though on the whole she was pretty sure she preferred women. Lost in her own thoughts, Nanoha didn't see the familiar face standing by the coffee cart. "Nanoha?"

Nanoha snapped back to reality just in time to steady herself as the person who called her pulled her into a giant hug. "Ohh my, Suzuka? I didn't know you were coming back here!" Nanoha's face split into a giant grin as she hugged her childhood friend back. "You didn't tell me!"

Suzuka grinned guiltily. "Yeah, I thought it would be a fun surprise. I was planning on stalking you before I surprised you, but since you look like you're here with a purpose, I'm assuming you're also going into the Neurology program?"

"Yes, you too? Ohhh this is going to be fun, it's like the old band is getting back together!"

Suzuka laughed. "UCGH has no idea what they just did. Did you know Alisa is here too? She's a nurse in the Neuro ICU."

"Dear god, and Hayate is here in the anesthesia program. I just hope we don't burn the hospital down with our shenanigans."

"Hahahahaha yup, everyone is in trouble! Do you know if there's any other residents starting?"

"Yeah, once of the guys I went to med school with also got matched to this program. His name is Vice, really good guy. Actually, there he is now."

Alisa and Nanoha watched as a tall brunette walked over to them, eyes the color of a storm. "Hey Nanoha, how was your vacation?"

"It was really good, yours?"

"Can't complain, got to do some flying, which was awesome. One of these days, we're gonna go skydiving with wing suits, you'll love it, it's just like flying!"

Alisa paled at that thought. "You two are crazy, I'd be sure the parachute wouldn't open and I have no desire to go splat!" Nanoha started laughing at the horrified expression on her friend's face.

"It's not that crazy! Alisa, meet Vice Granscenic. Vice, meet one of my friends from way back, Alisa Bannings."

As the two exchanged pleasantries, Nanoha kept scanning around. She then spied a tall girl with long blonde hair walking with Dr. Testarossa entering the large ground floor of the outpatient building where the coffee cart was. She was about to make herself noticeable when a woman with a long white lab jacket walked up.

"You three, you're here for the neurology orientation?" When all three nodded, she smiled and continued. "Excellent, I'm Alto Krauetta, 3rd year resident. I'm in charge of getting you guys settled in before you get your assignments. If you're ready, we'll head up to the clinic first to make sure you have access to the system, then take a little walk up through the inpatient areas. Any questions you have, please just ask. All right, everyone caffeinated? Let's head out!"

Nanoha sneaked one last glance at the blonde before she headed off after Alto. _Well, if I was able to find her again now, I'm sure I'll be able to do it again_. She then turned all her attention onto the older woman as they walked to the elevators. "….it's only open until 6, so you'll have to head for the main building if you want anything after that. Thankfully there's a Starbucks in the main building that's open until midnight, and the caf in the basement is open 24 hours, and they always have coffee."

Fate was walking to the door with her mother when she saw the auburn haired girl with the side ponytail following Alto to the elevators. _Well that solved my problem of not knowing where to find her. I'm glad she's in neuro, we'll be able to run into each other._ "Fate, you seem distracted. If everything alright? Fate tore her eyes away from the figure that she wanted to do nothing more than follow. "Yeah, everything is fine. Just thought I saw someone I recognized." Precia smiled at her youngest daughter. "Well ok, I just worry sometimes. We'll plan on dinner tomorrow night then. Lindy told me about this new restaurant that is supposed to be quite good, I'll make reservations. How does 8pm sound?"

"Sounds like a plan. Would you like to meet at the restaurant? "

"Yes that would work out fine. I'll send you the details later today. Now go get some sleep and I'll talk with you later."

"Alright Mom, have a good day" Fate smiled at Precia before walking out. Time for a date with her pillow, and she was looking forward to it. Since she now knew the mystery girl was a new neuro resident, she'd ask Mariko to keep an eye out for her. At least she knew Mari would not only keep her mouth shut, but she wouldn't tease her like Arf would. How her cousin and Arf fit together, she didn't know, but both of them were very happy. Fate sighed. "I wonder what it would be like to be that happy with someone." She wistfully murmured it to herself as she crossed the street, heading towards her apartment. The spring day was warming up, and she tilted her head towards the sun. _Well spring is a time for new beginnings, maybe something good will come out of this madness._

 **A/N:** UCGH is Uminari Ciry Genral Hospital, also known as Uminari General. Hope you guys enjoyed! I'll try to be faster with updates!


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